Lupus La Co Emerge

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
461126232
IRS 990 coverage
2019–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Encino, CA, USA
Phone
3106575667
Rating
60
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Specifically Named Diseases

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$805,983
Expenses
$767,912
Assets
$312,718
Liabilities
$139,209

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

12 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • SUSAN BAZARSKY (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)

Highest reported compensation

  • SUSAN BAZARSKY (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $203,943 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Lupus la promotes lupus research, awareness, and education, and serves the needs of people with lupus and their families in los angeles county

What it reported doing in 2025

Lupus LA was founded in 2000 by Daniel J. Wallace, MD, a renowned physician andauthor and attending physician in the division of rheumatology at Cedars-SinaiMedical Center and a clinical professor of medicine at UCLA's David Geffen School ofMedicine. Under his guidance, Lupus LA offers monthly support groups, as well aseducation programs and workshops throughout Los Angeles County.Committed to the hope and demonstrated promise of innovative science, Lupus LApartners with the Lupus Research Institute (LRI) to fund novel lupus research thatwill prevent, treat and cure the complex disease.With the power of Hollywood and the strength of its volunteer leadership, Lupus LAraises lupus awareness throughout the United States. Its fundraising events harnessthe might of the media and entertainment industries to spread the word about Lupusand its symptoms and dangers, and the need for safe and effective new treatments and a cure.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 66% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - Most voting board members are independent and the filed numbers largely add up. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and a relatively small share of total spending goes to programs.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 50
  • Transparency & Controls: 62
  • Accountability: 95
  • Sustainability: 29
  • Growth: 20

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 53.7%; rating input score 54
  • Program expense ratio: 56.3%; rating input score 56
  • Fundraising efficiency: $3.7 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 11; 11th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 84.6%; rating input score 85; 2nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 1 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 17
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 7 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 88
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 4.7%; rating input score 44; 44th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.41; rating input score 20; 20th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.45; rating input score 14; 14th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 26.6%; rating input score 10; 10th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -7.4% per year; rating input score 0; 6th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -0.4% per year; rating input score 0; 10th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 5.1% per year; rating input score 100; 36th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 53.7% of revenue deployed · 56.3% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 14 of 11 board members independent · 7 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $432K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $204K · 12 people listed · 1 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 26 of 28 current checks pass · 2 findings to review
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 7 filing years from 2019 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.
  • Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 54/100.
  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Program expense ratio scored 56/100.
  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 11/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 44/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 20/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Independent financial-statement audit not reported.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Independent members within voting members did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 10/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 14/100.